Hamster sleeps all the time!

[Dzoutzidis]

I've read that hamsters are supposed to sleep for 6 to 8 hours... Well mine is asleep or at least in it's nest from 7am until 10pm every day! It might leave once a day for a few minutes but not always. The temperature is above 70F and I've had him now for over a month so what gives? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Ria P]

Hi and welcome to HC!
Your hamster looks lovely. What's his name?

My Syrian hamster gets up around 23.00 or later. Usually he waits until i've gone to bed and then comes out when its dark and quiet. He's not shy or skittish but that's just the way he likes it.
Hamsters don't always sleep when they are in their nests and you can probably hear yours rustling about or munching from his hoard.
So your hamsters habits are quite normal and nothing to worry about.

There are things you can do to make your hamster more interested in his surroundings.
His enclosure appears to be a good size and has a lot of potential but there are issues.

Your hamster needs a bigger, 28cm wheel and this is very important. The one he has now could give him back problems and he may not enjoy running on it. It is enclosed so will get stuffy and hamsters like to hop on and off their wheels, sit on it to groom and look and sniff around.

He needs a large dark house, big enough for a big nest and a hoard. A shoe box would do fine with the bottom and an entrance cut out and the lid used as a removable roof. Tear plain white toilet paper into strips and leave it near the house for nesting material.

He needs more hides and enrichments like tunnels, bendy bridges, maybe a coconut hide, chew sticks and a Whimzee dog chew. Millet sprays to nibble on and some toys you can make yourself from cardboard.

He may enjoy a sandbath, not all Syrians do, mine uses his as a toilet.

How do you interact with your hamster? Do you talk to him? Can you stroke him? Does he take seeds from your hand?.

A month is a short time and it took me a while to get things right. My hamster's wheel and house was too small but i soon put it right because i wanted him to be happy.

Have a look at the "Let's see your cages" thread on the Forum under Housing to get ideas.

[Dzoutzidis]

Thank you so much for the quick reply! The hamster is my 8 year old daughter's pet. She was really excited to get him but is now frustrated because he's literally waking up just after she goes to bed and going to sleep just before she wakes up!
His name is fuzzball. He doesn't really like to be touched. He'll take small treats from our hands but it's hard to try and tame him when he's never around when we're awake.... We read up about how to slowly tame a hamster but can't do any of those things when he's always in his nest!
I tried putting in a heat lamp but he didn't care about that. He has a wooden house that he used to build his nest in but then we'd never see him at all so I took it out.
Might try the sand bath soon. He has all kinds of widen bridges to chew on and seems happy with his wheel. He uses it for hours at night. He's very good about pooping in the same spot all the time so cleaning so far has been easy. Do your hamsters come out and play much during the day? I see you went with the Thomas the train theme for their names!

[AmityvilleHams]

Originally Posted by Dzoutzidis

He's very good about pooping in the same spot all the time so cleaning so far has been easy.

I'm not sure if you knew this but hamsters eat their poop to gain vital nutrients, and their poop doesn't actually have any odor or anything to it so you really shouldn't remove it. It sounds gross to us humans but it is a perfectly natural and healthy thing that many species do!

[Jo 17]

Hello Dzoutzidis...
I do not thing you should worry about your hamster...I know its frustrating but that is just how hamsters are - they sleep most day. Mine is getting up around 22.00 and its only because I am talking to him from about 21.00 hehehehe and He most likely just pity me then. Normally He waits until we go to bed and then I can hear Him.
As for taming your hamster it might take some time, but you could try some trick that worked for me - someone advised me to tear some toilet paper into strips, rub it gently in your hands, so there is your scent on it, and putt it into the cage. It makes your hamster getting use to your scent a bit quicker....good luck...

[Dzoutzidis]

Oh wow... that sounds pretty gross! Eating their own poop... I did notice him grabbing it and sort of "tasting" it but not actually eating it.

So I guess what you guys are saying is that you don't see your hamsters pretty much all day either? From morning until late evening they stay hidden in their boxes/nests? I'm not worried about the hamster's health, I'm worried that my daughter will totally lose interest in a pet she never gets to see. I'd love to "nudge" his schedule a bit so that he leaves his next in the evening....

[Ria P]

I volunteer in a rodent rescue and so far every single hamster i've collected to be rehomed comes from families where the children have lost interest. I'm going to collect two hamsters tomorrow for the very same reason. It makes me incredibly sad and also mad. Mad because petshops sell hamsters without pointing out that they sleep most of the day and are up and active during the night. Petshops sell tiny, toylike colourful cages produced to appeal to children, in pink, in a circus tent shape and who knows what. I feel sorry for the hamsters and the often disappointed children and the puzzled parents wondering how to resolve the situation.

Hamsters are motivated by food. Our Syrian joins us for breakfast every morning and then goes back to his house.

I would get Fluffball a big wooden house with a removable roof (or a shoebox house) and then cut the roof into two sections. The Ferplast guinea pig house (hamster size is too small for a Syrian) only costs around £12. He'll make his nest and get very cosy in there. Give him some toilet paper strips too. After a few days take off one section of the roof ( NOT the one above his nest) at a set time like 6 or 7pm and offer him a treat like a sunflower or pumkin seed or a tiny bit of cheese, piece of cucumber etc to tempt him out of his nest to get the treat and talk to him nicely while doing so. Repeat this every evening while gradually moving the treat further away until he climbs out of his house to get it. Then get a mug or jug with a treat in it for him to walk into so you can lift him out of his cage and put him in a playpen or hamstersafe area or on your lap while sitting on the floor to start interacting with him. Most hamsters don't like to be touched at first until they get familiar with your smell and realize that you are not a threat to them. You need to be very very patient with hamsters. They are prey animals and naturally shy and easily frightened but with time they will gain your trust. Your hamster will eventually connect you with nice things and treats. This is the way i got our Syrian out of his house for taming sessions. There were times when he did not want to leave his nest and i couldn't tempt him out and in that case its better to close the roof and let them be then try again later or the next evening.
He still doesn't look exactly enthusiastic when i stroke and handle him but tolerates me and doesn't bite.


It took our rescue Robo four months to trust me enough to come onto my hand to eat some linseeds. I put my hand flat in his tank when he happened to be above ground and he used to run off for weeks and weeks, then carefully approach and sniff and then one very early morning he plucked up the courage and came onto my hand to eat the seeds.

To your questions: No, i don't see our hamsters much during the day, only the diabetic dwarf comes out to get a drink and forage around. When i'm around he'll try for a mealworm or two so definitely sees me as a source of treats.

The Thomas the tank names weren't planned or age appropriate for a 62yr old woman. Our first hamster we named Henry because i wanted an H name to go with Hamster. Then i adopted a Robo already named Gordon and my steam train enthusiast OH pointed out the connection and jokingly said that all we need now is a Percy. Edward turned out an Edwina.